3/1 To Win
Phillip Cocu has challenged his Derby County players to take the positivity from their second half performance against Sheffield Wednesday in midweek into Saturday’s home clash against Millwall (3pm kick-off).
The clash with Gary Rowett’s side will be Derby’s last on home turf ahead of Christmas and their second inside four days, following the 1-1 draw against Sheffield Wednesday in midweek.
After struggling to get going in the opening 45 minutes against Garry Monk’s side, the Rams flew out of the traps in the second half and showed a positive response to Cocu’s half-time team talk.
Derby applied pressure to the Wednesday backline and their perseverance was rewarded as Chris Martin levelled from the penalty spot late on.
They had chances to win the game as the clock ticked down and Cocu wants to see the second half display from the off against the Lions, as they looked to build on their nine-game unbeaten run at Pride Park Stadium.
“It will be even more important for us on Saturday after a draw to get a win,” Cocu told RamsTV.
“As always, we will focus on our game play and if the lads give everything on the pitch, the fans will see that and that is what I ask for on Saturday.
“It will be similar to the game on Wednesday in terms of the challenge we will face.
“We defended well on the set-pieces and corners that Sheffield Wednesday had. Direct play to the strikers is what we can expect and physical game play too.”
He added: “If we show our face like we did the second half in midweek, then I think we can get a good result.”
Millwall, managed by former Derby boss Rowett, sit 13th in the Sky Bet Championship table while the Rams are four points behind in 16th position.
